Trekking high in the rains: My Annapurna Circuit tale

On the second day I was not as lucky as this horseman (in the pic). I had to cross the 'river-road' on foot.

I was wearing waterproof shoes. However, while crossing I realised my shoes had good waterproofing but the water was more than ankle deep and I ended up with very wet shoes.

We were trekking up to Chame. Jeeps too go up to Chame, so while we were trekking up, these jeeps going up would honk us out of the road. We got no rains but clouds ruled, they obscured every high peak that could have been sighted.

Trekking high in the rains: My Annapurna Circuit tale

After four days of continuous walking I was looking forward to the rest day at Manang. By now we were at an altitude of 3519 meters but thankfully I was coping quite well.

The next day, when I got down for breakfast it was raining. The original plan was to trek for an hour to a slightly higher altitude and then get down for better acclimatisation. But since it was raining and we had the entire day available to do it; we postponed the walk.

It was still raining at lunch time. Around 4 pm we went out into mild rain for our acclimatisation walk.

Trekking high in the rains: My Annapurna Circuit tale

We started trekking from Manang while it was raining, and when we reached Ledar after six hours it was still raining. By now we were at 4200 meters above sea level and it was cold.

The following day we were supposed to go to the High Camp at 4800 metres and then cross the 5400 meter high Thorang La. But nature had other plans.

Next morning, it started snowing after breakfast. We decided to take a day off here as well because of the snow. For a few hours I was happy.

However, it was still snowing when I went for lunch and it snowed till I went to sleep. We decided to turn back as it had been snowing on higher places since three days or so. Trekking was becoming risky.

Trekking high in the rains: My Annapurna Circuit tale

Once any trek is over, all we want is to get back to civilisation. We were looking forward to the jeeps at Chame. However there were none.

There were landslides, minor streams (which I had to wade through) and waterfalls on the road by now. No one exactly knew where one could get a jeep from.

We walked for three days from Ledar (of which two days were in the rain) and finally found jeeps at Chamche. I also saw this rainbow at a waterfall.

Had there been no jeeps at Chamche as well, we would have had to walk for four more days to get to Beshishahar. I have never been happier on finding a jeep and a road on which it could still run! The same jeeps that irritated me with their honking while going up were a welcome sight now!

Trekking high in the rains: My Annapurna Circuit tale

I am not much of a boating person but I was intrigued by the boatwomen of Phewa Lake. So I went for a ride with Lakshmi. All the boatwomen I talked to, gave me the same reply -- it was for livelihood that they rowed a boat. They didn’t hint at anything even slightly romantic about their decision.

I will surely trek again next year but I am going to make sure it does not coincide with the monsoon.

Above everything else, I trek for the views. But the high mountains of the Annapurna Circuit Trek were almost completely invisible in June. Besides, walking an entire day in rain is not my idea of fun either.

Mridula Dwivedi is an academic from India who is passionate about trekking and travelling, and these days dreaming about going to Antarctica. She blogs atTravel Tales from India.